Preparation

1. General Evacuation Information

If a wildfire occurs and an evacuation is ordered, it is done by evacuation zone. San Diego County is divided into 2669 evacuation zones. The following five evacuation zones encompass San Elijo Hills:

• 0850
• 0852
• 0854
• 0920
• 0921

Click on the link for a map showing the a San Elijo Hills evacuation zones and borders. (Source: San Diego County Office of Emergency Services ) The best way to determine your evacuation zone is via Genasys Protect, either on their website or their phone app.

It is important that you know your evacuation zone number, as well as those that border it, in case an evacuation order is extended. You should record this information in your evacuation plan (more details about evacuation plans below).

2. Information on Wildfires In Progress, Alerts, Weather, and Blackouts

You'll want to stay ahead of the game in understanding the threat level at any particular time, wildfires in progress and their location, weather information and forecasts (particularly wind conditions), and any power blackouts in progress or pending.

The following websites and phone applications are potential sources for the information you will need to prepare for and be notified of an evacuation:

• Alert San Diego (website) and SD Emergency (phone app): Purpose is to "provide information before, during and after disasters. AlertSanDiego.org is the official source of information from the County of San Diego during a large-scale emergency."
• SDGE Outage Map (website) and SDGE Alerts (phone app)
• CAL FIRE Emergency Incidents Map (website)

3. Preparing an Evacuation Plan

Note: Once you have prepared your evacuation plan, I copy should be stored in your evacuation vehicle(s) and convenient home location for ready access.

Your evacuation plan should include:

• A map depicting at least two (2) emergency evacuation routes, with the routes marked clearly on the map. (San Elijo Hills Evacuation Routes map)
• An emergency go-bag checklist that includes all of the items you will need in the event of an evacuation (see below).
• A communications plan:
• Contact list: Family, neighbors, local emergency numbers
• Meeting point, if separated after evacuation
• Group text: To quickly update everyone
• Community evacuation zones:
  • Know your evacuation zone and the surrounding zones
  • Understand alert levels (evacuation warnings vs. orders)
• Documentation & insurance:
• Maintain a home inventory (photos/videos of belongings)
• Know your insurance coverage for fire and evacuation
• Store documents digitally and in your go-bag.

4. Emergency Supply Kit

Each household should have an emergency supply kit. If possible, the kit should be pre-built and stored in a readily accessible location. The kit should include, as a minimum:

• Prescription medications (at least 7 days).
• A change of clothes and extra eyeglasses/contact lens
• Supply of non-perishable food and water (at least 2 days)
• Personal hygiene items and hand sanitizer
• Important documents (e.g., insurance policies, IDs, bank account records) in a waterproof container. Consider digitizing (scanning) important documents and storing them in "the cloud", to reduce the amount you have to transport.
• Cell phones. During an emergency, there may be a power outage, so keep your cell phones charged so that they are always available for use in an emergency. Have a battery backup, if possible, to provide for extended use.
• Vehicles. Keep your gas tanks at least have full, or if you have an electric vehicle, keep it fully charged.